A variety of relatively large covers have been heretofore provided such as, for example, to cover boats, to keep moisture and weather from the inside of the boat when not in use. In the past, rather makeshift cords or ropes and items such as bungee cords have been utilized for this purpose, but they have not been entirely satisfactory and, in particular, the hook portions on bungee cords have not been sufficiently strong to avoid coming loose and the open hook is not entirely reliable as there is a tendency for the cords to slip from the hooks. Further, there is no known tiedown system that assures a generally uniform holddown tension along the entire periphery of a relatively large cover, such as that used to cover boats.
Peardon U.S. Pat. No. 1,373,349 discloses an outwardly flared hook having an eyelet at each end of a rope with one hook permanently attached to the rope and the other hook adjusts longitudinally of the rope. Simon U.S. Pat. No. 3,328,064 discloses a tiedown device using a conventional open U-shaped hook with an eyelet along one shank and having a flexible cord looped through the eyelet and secured to the rope. A hook is also provided at the opposite end of the cord. Tracy U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,677 discloses a stretchable tiedown device having an open hook of a special hollow construction and a special fastening arrangement between the hook and the flexible cord.